Happy New Year
by tehgreatmystery
Summary: They had been friends since middle school. They had loved each other since high school. They just never realized it until someone asked. LuNa Oneshot.


Happy New Year

Summary: They had been friends since middle school. They had loved each other since high school. They just never realized it until someone asked. [LuNa] Oneshot.

~x~

**Author's Note: This has been written for my good friend Kamy-sama for Christmas/New Year's~! Enjoy~**

~x~**  
**

"Snow! Snoooooow! Nami, look at all the snow!" a teenage boy cried, running happily towards the large snow banks. His friend watched him, rolling her eyes at the obvious immaturity. Other, younger, students were reacting the same way, but she chose to continue walking to avoid them. Nami personally hated snow – she was much more of a summer person – but her friends loved it.

As she walked, a large, wet snowball hit her in the side of head, halting her. Not even bothering to look who it was, she put her bag down on a bench, and slowly turned to the crowd of snowball-fighters. One in particular, a muscular green-haired one, was laughing loudly at her.

Before anyone could warn him, she ran right to him, scooped up snow and shoved it down his shirt. Yelping, she jumped backwards and fell into the piles. Not satisfied, Nami began to kick snow on top of him, ignoring her other laughing friends around her. "That's what you get for attacking Nami-chan, Marimo!" one of them called, joining her.

"Uh…guys…?" Usopp said, backing away from Nami. Without a word, Nami turned and kicked Zoro, who had managed to stand up, as hard as she could, sending him flying forward several feet in the snow.

The green-haired man looked up at her in surprise, then anger. "What the hell was that for?!" he demanded, shaking snow off his head as he stood up. "You already got me!" The others were laughing loudly, watching as the scene unfolded.

"Maybe I wasn't done with you!" Nami cried, turning on her heel once more to the safety of the sidewalk. "I'm going home!" A groan of protest followed this, though she chose to ignore. Footsteps sounded next to her, and Nami looked up at him, picking up her bag. "What are you doing Luffy?" she asked tiredly.

The teenager shook snow out of his hair, grinning at her. "I'm gonna walk home with you," he said cheerfully. Nami paused for a second, then shook her head.

"No, you can stay. I'll be fine on my own," she said tiredly, continuing to walk again. Luffy followed her, swinging his bag around in his arm. "Fine, you can walk home with me," Nami said, seeing no other option. Luffy had an iron-will anyways; there was no way she'd be able to convince him to do anything he hadn't already chosen to do.

As they walked, the two chatted idly about school, and the beginnings of winter break, which Nami was much more excited about than the actual snow. "I get to sleep in, and Nojiko's coming to visit!" she said happily, hugging the bag to her chest. Luffy grinned, sticking his picky finger up his nose as he listened. Nami stared at him in slight disgust, but didn't say anything about it. "Is Ace-san coming back for the holidays too?"

"Yep!" Luffy replied, pulling his finger loose. Nami kept her eyes straight ahead, not wanting to see if anything was on his finger. "He told me to make sure that Nojiko was definitely coming back, too." Nami smirked, not mentioning that Nojiko had asked her to do the same thing earlier. "Do you mind if me and Ace spend the New Year with you guys?"

Nami glanced up at him in confusion. "Yeah, I guess. Aren't you celebrating with your Gramps?" she asked, slinging her bag over her shoulder again. Luffy stuck his lower lip and shook his head. "He's working again?"

A silence from him confirmed it. "Makino's gonna be there, but since you said me and Ace can spend it with you guys, she can come too," he said, scratching his messy black hai casually. Nami smiled and nodded – it would certainly be better than just Gen-san, Nojiko, and her.

"Do you know what Zoro, Usopp and Sanji-kun are doing for the holidays?" she asked after a few minutes of silence. Luffy shook his head, and Nami sighed – she should have known. The remainder of the walk was in silence, and when the two reached Nami's apartment, they both paused. "Thanks for walking me home, Luffy," she said, smiling at him. Luffy grinned widely at her, and turned to leave.

"No problem, Nami! Oh, we're all gonna meet up at Usopp's for a snowball fight! Do you wanna come?" he asked, pausing. Nami stared at him flatly, and shook her head. "Aw, come on Nami! Vivi's gonna be there, and we need one more person for teams!"

The redhead sighed, relenting. "Fine, I'll be there. What time?" she asked, beginning to turn onto the walkway for her house. Luffy grinned widely, shouting out the time. "Alright, I'll see you then. Thanks again!"

For several seconds after she was inside, Luffy stood in place and stared at the door she had entered. Sighing, he turned to leave and walked right into another person. "Whoa! Sorry!" he cried, looking up at the person and grinning widely, "Ace!"

Ace looked down at him, his hat shielding his eyes from the blinding snow. "Hey little brother. Shouldn't you be at school or something?" he asked, glancing at the apartment building then back to Luffy. "Oh, never mind, school's done until the New Year isn't it?" The younger one nodded happily, spreading his arms wide and grinning.

"Yep! No more school, and all this snow! You should come to our snowball fight too, Ace!" he exclaimed, his hands falling onto his hips. Ace rolled his eyes, and the two started to walk towards the direction of their Grandpa's house.

"No can do, Luffy. I'm crawling into bed and sleeping as soon as we reached that old man's place," he said casually, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I dropped my stuff off so I could come pick you up as a surprise. 'Course, when I got halfway there, I saw you standing and looking at that apartment building."

Luffy nodded, placing his hands behind his head as he walked. "I was walking Nami home because Zoro hit her in the head with a snowball and she got all angry," he explained. Ace smirked, one eyebrow raised.

"You and her dating finally?" he asked, glancing at his brother. Luffy tripped a little, staring up at his older brother in surprise. Ace laughed, "Relax, I was just curious. The two of you sure act like a couple-to-be."

The younger couldn't stop staring at Ace. "We do?" he asked innocently. Ace sighed; leave it to Luffy to be the innocent, naïve kid. "Like how you and Nojiko act when you see each other?"

Ace sputtered now, catching himself before he could fall. "Yeah, but Nojiko and I were a couple before we both went off to college, and when we do see each other during breaks and stuff, we're a couple again. What you and Nami have is completely different," he explained, shaking his head. Luffy stared at him, not getting it. Ace sighed again. "Alright, I'll just ask it bluntly then – do you like her more than a friend or not?"

Luffy considered. He hadn't really stopped and thought about it until now, but something told him that he did. "I dunno," he finally said, frowning, "I never thought about it." Ace groaned, draping an arm around his brother's shoulders. "How do you tell if you do or don't?"

The older one laughed, leaning against him. "It's different for everyone, you know? Let's play a game of word association, alright?" he suggested. Luffy nodded cheerfully. "You wanna start?" the younger one shook his head, grinning up at Ace. "Good. Friends."

"Nami, Zoro, Usopp, Sanji, and Vivi!"

Ace sighed. "No, idiot, I say one word, you say one word. So, we'll go with Nami since she was the first one you said. Nojiko," he explained, smirking.

"Blue," Luffy replied quickly, nodding.

"Water," Ace said.

"Shanks!"

"Red."

"Yellow."

"Orange."

"Nami!"

"Aha!" Ace declared, jumping away from a very confused Luffy. "You do like her!" Luffy stared at him, blinking. "When I said friends, you said Nami first, even though you've known her for the shortest amount of time, and as soon as I said orange you said her again!"

"How does that prove anything, Ace?!" he asked, rolling his eyes. He could feel his heart beating faster than normal, and sweat had popped out on the back of his neck.

The older of the two rolled his eyes, draping his arm over his shoulders and walking again. "It means that you're thinking of her a lot, which is one of the most basic signs of liking a girl," he explained, smirking. Luffy considered this; did he like Nami more than a friend? "Dude, just tell me if you do! I'm your brother! If anything, I can give some advice on how to get a date with her."

A date? With Nami? Involuntarily, Luffy grinned. Noticing this, Ace's smile widened. "I knew it. Don't worry, you don't have to say anything – big brothers always know," he said. Luffy nodded, still smiling at the idea of a date with Nami. Just as he started to imagine it, a wave of doubt crashed over him and he frowned.

"But Ace, Nami doesn't feel the same!" he said. His shoulders slumped, and any excitement he had felt earlier vanished. Ace rolled his eyes, leading him up the walkway to their house.

"That's where her lovely older sister comes in, obviously. Don't you worry about a thing – I'll give her a call, and have her dish out some dirt for us," he said, closing the door behind them. Luffy smiled again, throwing his bag into the living room and kicking his shoes off. Ace did the same, heading to the stairs. "Do not disturb." He said, giving one last smirk to Luffy, who nodded and headed into the kitchen.

As was usually the case with after school, the entire house was empty. Luffy stuck out his bottom lip and opened the fridge, unable to keep his thoughts away from Nami. Now that Ace had made the choices clear, Luffy was positive that he definitely _did _like her more than a friend. Though, he suspected that he should have realized it that time in middle school when he beat up a kid for making her cry.

~x~

Nami entered the apartment slowly, glancing around at the mess. Sighing, he placed her bag on the counter and began to pull of her shoes. "Gen-san, I'm home!" she called, pulling off her coat next. From the kitchen, a head popped out, though it wasn't the usual head. "Nojiko!" Nami cried, running forward and throwing her arms around her sister.

Laughing, Nojiko hugged back, nearly falling off the chair. "Good to see you too, Nami," she said casually, squeezing her sister tightly. Nami grinned and pulled away, glancing at Gen-san at the stove. "Gen-san, can't you hurry up? I'm hungry," Nojiko whined, holding her stomach.

"You're lucky you just got back for the first time since term started, Nojiko, so just be patient!" he told her in his gravelly voice. Nami grinned, watching as he tried to cook. "Welcome home, Nami. How was school?"

Nami leaned across the counter to grimace at what she saw in the pan. "Good. Gen-san, let me make a snack, alright? I don't even know why you tried to cook, knowing you can't," she said, untying her tie and heading to the stove. Without a complaint, the man moved over, grateful that Nami had stepped in. "When did you get back, Nojiko?"

The blue haired girl was too busy reading a text on her phone, grinning at the contents – _Luffy has been confirmed. You're turn!_. "About an hour ago. I was going to go pick you up, but Gen-san wanted it to be a surprise when you got home," she explained, leaning back in the chair. Nami nodded, staring at Gen-san flatly.

Catching the look, he frowned, crossing his arms against his chest. "Can you blame a man for wanting to talk to one of the girls he's been raising the past eight years?" he asked, leaning against the wall. Both grinned, and nodded. "Bah! You two are just like your Mother!"

Nami smirked, trying to save the stir-fry before it was too ruined. "That isn't going to offend us, you know," she pointed out. Nojiko nodded in approval, turning to Gen-san.

"You had your turn to sit and talk to me, now it's Nami's turn," she said pointedly, shooing him out of the kitchen. "And don't listen in!" she added, spinning back to Nami. "Nami, you tell me everything, don't you?"

The redhead frowned. "Of course I do, Nojiko! Why, did you hear something from Ace?" she asked, rolling her eyes. She suspected that Ace had gone and made up something about her, which wouldn't really surprise her.

Nojiko rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. "Good. So, tell me," she said, leaning forward, "any boys catch your eye?" she asked quietly, her eyebrows raised. Nami didn't even miss a beat; she just continued to prepare the snack. "Well?"

"Don't you think I'd have _told_ you right off the bat if any of them had?" Nami countered, turning off the heat and scrapping it onto a plate. Nojiko sighed and grabbed a fork from the drawer and began eating. "The boys at my school are all…definitely not what I'm looking for," she continued, sitting down across from her sister.

Eating slowly, Nojiko pointed the fork at Nami, smirking. "What about Luffy? The two of you spend a lot of time together, right? And it's not like he wouldn't do anything for you. I wouldn't be surprised if he pines after you when the two of aren't together," she said, taking another bite. Warm blush crept up Nami's face and she shook her head, turning away to try and hide it.

"Luffy's just a friend; my best friend," she said, crossing her arms against her chest. Nojiko didn't move except to chew; keeping her eyes accusingly on her sister. "Quit looking at me like that, Nojiko!"

Laughing, Nojiko finally turned back to her food, picking out the pieces she wouldn't eat. "Getting awfully defensive, eh Nami?" she said quietly. Nami froze for a second before slipping off the chair and standing up.

For a few seconds, the two remained silent. Then, "I told you, Nojiko, Luffy's just my best friend," she said quietly, turning back to her. Nojiko smiled, seeing the real answer behind her words. "What's with this, anyways? You never cared if Luffy and I were suddenly secretly pining after one another before!"

"Nami, relax. I only ask because I don't want you to make the same mistake I did and tell the guy you have feelings for the day before you both get your acceptance letters into two very different colleges. The two of you are graduating soon, right? Well, go for it! Someone else might snatch him up before you if you don't," she said softly, standing up and scraping the remains of the plate in the trash. "Just think about it, and tell me later."

After she was gone, Nami sat back down, holding her head in her hands. Part of her was telling her that Nojiko was right, but she wouldn't admit to it. "Like I said," she told herself quietly, "Luffy's my best friend. I'm not going to screw that up by falling for him and tearing apart the group. Besides, not like he'd fall for me. Well, he hasn't fallen for anyone, really," she said, sitting up and staring at her hands.

Hearing her statements, Nojiko grinned, flipping open her phone and beginning to text. _Got it. We're ready for the blind date!_ She sent, grinning happily at Gen-san, who looked back at her in confusion.

~x~

The next several days came and went, including multiple snowball fights. Unfortunately for Nami, Ace was over constantly, so her time with Nojiko was drastically cut and spent with Vivi, another close friend. "I mean," she complained, "I get the fact that they haven't seen each other in so long, but do they have to sit there and shoo me out of my own house?!"

Vivi grinned, listening to her friends complaints only half-heartedly. "Maybe Nojiko-san is trying to tell you to get your own boyfriend," she said unknowingly. Nami tensed, wracking her brain to check if she mentioned the conversation between Nojiko and her that first day.

Finding none, she relaxed and rolled her eyes. "You're just saying that because you want me to double-date with you and Sanji-kun," she said, smirking as Vivi blushed. "Well, I'll have you know that I'm not interested in any of these idiot boys at our school," Nami told her certainly.

"Really now," her friend muttered, not meeting her eyes. Nami watched her, brown eyes narrowing dangerously. Sensing her friend's glare, Vivi looked up, "What?"

Nami snorted. "Don't 'what?' me. Tell me what you mean by that," she demanded, crossing her arms against her chest tightly. Vivi sighed, looking down at her hands again. "Vivi, tell me."

Instead of answering, Vivi choose to watch the younger kids on the playground close to where they were sitting. "The guys and I were thinking," she finally said in a low voice, "that you and Luffy should stop lying to yourselves and just admit how you feel."

The redhead jumped up in surprise, nearly slipping on ice. "Wha-what?!" she asked, staring down at er blue-haired friend. Vivi rolled her eyes, staring up at Nami with an expression that clearly said 'you know what'. "How many times do I have to say this? Luffy and I are _just friends_!"

"You can tell yourself that, Nami-san, but that's not what everyone else sees," Vivi retorted, sighing. "Calm down, it was just an idea we all had the other day," she said, looking away again. Slowly, Nami lowered herself onto the bench, crossing her arms again. "Nami-san, you can tell me if you like him, you know."

Unable to stop herself, Nami laughed bitterly. "You're the second person to tell me that – well, Nojiko didn't say it, but she was thinking it – and I'll tell you the same thing I told her: Luffy and I are just friends," she said, leaning back. Vivi sighed, checking her watch. Nami did the same, gasping at the time – she was supposed to be back at her apartment with everyone else a half hour ago! "Vivi, I have to run, sorry," she said, jumping up. "Happy New Year!" she called behind her, nearly sprinting back to her house.

When she reached her apartment, everyone was inside, huddled around the television set. Upon her arrival, all five heads looked up and smiled at her. "Ah, the woman of the hour – Nami! Always fashionably late!" Ace mocked, standing up and bowing to her. Nojiko giggled behind her hand, and Luffy just flat out laughed. Out of breath, Nami yanked off her coat and flung it at him.

"Shut up, Ace," she panted, pushing him out of the way and sitting between Nojiko and Luffy. Her older sister draped an arm around her, leaning her head against her shoulder as she had been to Ace. Sticking her tongue out at Ace, Nami smirked.

Grumbling, Ace sat down against her legs, leaning his head against her knees. "You can have that seat. I didn't wanna sit next to Luffy anyways," he said, elbowing Nami's shin. Rolling her eyes, Nami leaned back and checked the time.

"Why are we just sitting around waiting for the celebration?" she asked, untangling herself and standing, "Gen-san! Where are the drinks?! The party-food?!" she asked, hands on her hips. Ace scrambled back into his seat, wrapping an arm around his girlfriends' waist. Luffy jumped up at the mention of food, his tongue hanging out of his mouth.

Gen-san looked up, his pinwheel spinning, "You make it, I can't cook anyways," he told her, leaning back against the wall next to Makino. Nami sighed, turning on her heel and setting to work.

"Luffy," she directed, brandishing a wooden spoon at him, "sit at the table and don't mess me up." Doing as he was told, he slumped forward, taking a long drink from a can of soda. Satisfied, Nami set to work on mixing drinks – something her Mother taught her a long time ago.

"How come you were so late?" Luffy asked after a while, clenching his fist and smashing the soda can in his hand.

Nami didn't answer, too concentrated on mixing the drink well. "Vivi-chan and I were talking," she finally said, taking glasses out of a cupboard and pouring the drink. Whistling, she slid the drinks out onto the counter, watching in slight amusement as they all jumped up to get one. Turning back to the stove, she began to make snacks.

Luffy nodded in understanding, leaning into a cooler and grabbing another soda. Nami ignored him, continuing with her cooking. "Ace said the two of us are spending the night here," he said after she started, leaning back in his chair.

"You're WHAT?!" Nami said, spinning around. Luffy watched her, laughing. Eyes narrowing, Nami grabbed a spoon and whacked him as hard as she could over the head with it.

Shielding his head, he slipped off the chair and landed on the floor under the table. "Yep! Ace said he wanted to be with Nojiko for the first night in the New Year, whatever that means," he told her, poking his head out from under the table. Kneeling down, Nami glared at him, gesturing for him to continue. "He said some other things, but I can't remember them, so they probably weren't that important," he added, grinning as she whacked him with the spoon again.

Standing up, she glared at the happy couple observing the whole thing, smirking. Realizing just how they were taking that, her whole face went red and she turned around and continued cooking without another word. Luffy stayed on the floor, casually staring up at the underside of the table.

Several hours passed, and it was the final countdown until the New Year. Now fully supplied with some snacks and drinks – Nami had made sure to leave the champagne untouched – Ace pulled Luffy aside, closing the door behind him. "Alright, little brother," he said quietly, leaning in, "here's what I want you to do; on the dot of the New Year," he said, whispering now, "give Nami a big kiss on the lips."

Light blush crept up to his cheeks, and he stared into his drunken brothers' face. "But, she doesn't like me like that," he protested, crossing his arms. Ace rolled his eyes, draping an arm around his shoulders and leading him back.

"Trust me, Luffy, it'll all work out," he told him, downing a small shot. Luffy nodded, making his decision. Nojiko watched them reenter the room, smirking.

Grabbing Nami's arm, she leaned forward and whispered in her ear; "You're in for a surprise tonight, baby sister!" Nami stared at her, pushing away from her, rolling her eyes. Nojiko laughed, and beckoned Ace to come back and sit with her on the couch for the final ten minutes before the New Year. Nami waved Luffy forward, and he sat down next to her grinning his impossibly wide grin.

"Gen-san, Makino-san, come back out here!" Nojiko called loudly, one arm around Ace's shoulders and the other holding tightly to a tall glass of champagne that Nami had poured recently. "It's the last minute of the year, come _on_!"

Hastily, the two adults reentered the room, and all six of them leaned forward as the countdown started. Those who were drunk – and Luffy, who was not – began to scream the numbers counting down. Nami watched, saying the numbers with them, but not nearly as loud.

"Ten! Nine! Eight!" Ace screamed, pulling Nojiko up to stand. Nami gripped Luffy's arm, and continued to shout. "Five! Four! Three! Two! One!" she cried, smiling widely. Just before she could shout out a 'happy New Year!' with everyone else, Luffy grabbed her cheek and pulled her closer to him, pressing his lips against her softly.

In that second, Nami thought the world had ended. Automatically, she kissed him back, not hearing the others celebrating loudly next to her. The kiss, only last several seconds, ended and they continued on with the celebration.

Needing some air, Nami went up to the kitchen, grabbing a water bottle and beginning to down it. Luffy followed, leaning against the table patiently. "Nami," he said softly, and Nami looked up and blushed, "I like you."

For a second, the redhead remained silent. Then, before she could think about what she was doing, she threw her arms around him, spilling some water, "I like you too!" she cried, not caring that the others were watching and giggling.

"Happy New Year, Nami!" Luffy cried happily, pulling away and kissing her one more time.

~x~

**Author's Note: Awww, so cute. Well, I hope you enjoyed. Especially you, Kamy-sama, as this was for you! =D**


End file.
